Pride of Detroit
The Detroit Lions are running out of margin for error. Currently on the outside of the NFC playoff picture, the Lions can ill afford to lose more than one game in their final four. Technically speaking, if they go a perfect 4-0 in their final four, they’re onto the postseason. Anything less than that, and they’ll need at least a little bit of help.
Unfortunately for Detroit, in order to go 4-0 in the final month of the season, they’ll have to take down arguably the best team in football first. The Los Angeles Rams are 10-3, hold the No. 1 seed in the NFC, and own the league’s second-best point differential at +152. And with the 10-3 Seattle Seahawks right on their heels in the division, the Rams also need to continue winning or their hopes of kicking off the playoff with a home game could be jeopardy.
In other words, there are some huge stakes to Sunday’s game between the Rams and Lions. So much so that the storyline of Jared Goff and Matthew Stafford facing off against their former teams again has taken a back seat. This is already the fourth time these two have played against each other since the 2021 trade that changed the trajectory of both quarterbacks’ careers.
In this post, we’ll be providing live updates, highlights, and drive-by-drive analysis of Lions vs. Rams after the game kicks off at 4:25 p.m. ET. To access updates, simply refresh this page after kickoff. When the game ends, this will turn into our game recap.
Enjoy the game and GO LIONS!
The Rams won the toss and deferred, giving the Lions the ball first to try and take the lead. Their initial drive got off to a promising start with first down grabs from Amon-Ra St. Brown (8 yards) and Jameson Williams (22). But a holding penalty got them behind the sticks, and facing a fourth-and-4 from the Rams’ 25-yard line, they opted to kick a field goal. Unfortunately, Jake Bates pulled the 43-yard field goal wide left, keeping the game scoreless.
The Rams quickly worked into the red zone with 17 and 18-yard gains to Davante Adams. However, the drive came to an immediate halt when Aidan Hutchinson leapt in front of a screen pass and took it the other way all the way down into the Rams’ red zone.
It took the Lions’ offense just one play to take advantage, with Jared Goff finding St. Brown on a post route for a 17-yard touchdown. 7-0 Lions.
The Rams responded with a gritty, methodical drive. The Lions defense had a chance to get a stop at midfield, forcing a fourth-and-4. However, Matthew Stafford found Puka Nacua in tight coverage for a 6-yard gain and a new set of downs.
The Rams faced another fourth down on the next set of downs, and Nacua, again, converted a fourth-and-8 to keep the drive alive, despite very tight coverage from Amik Robertson.
Then Stafford made...
